


The Red Dress

by Tarynicole2442



Category: Captain America (Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-05
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-16 02:55:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28574856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tarynicole2442/pseuds/Tarynicole2442
Summary: Steve follows Peggy out of the bar after she shows up in the red dress.
Relationships: Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers
Kudos: 37





	The Red Dress

Peggy laid down her pen with a sigh. That was the last of her paperwork and she was ready to head home and slip into a hot bath. The best thing about working in London was being able to go home to her own place at the end of the night. A rare luxury during the war. Collecting her things, she heads towards the door. Spotting Howard tinkering with some contraption, she steps towards him. “Playing with your toys a bit late tonight, hmm?,” she asks. “You know me Peg,” he replies, “working on some new equipment for Rogers. I want to have him look them over in the morning and I have a few last minute adjustments to make.” “Very well. Goodnight, Howard.” “Goodnight, Peg.”

She makes her way home, dreaming of the warmth of her tub. She passes by the pub where all the soldiers spend their evenings and smiles as she sees Steve standing at the bar. Her hand reaches for the door before she stops herself. “No need to bother him,” she tells herself, “you will see him in the morning.” She forces herself to turn away and makes her way home. 

As she walks into her flat, she can’t stop thinking about Steve. She had always felt drawn to him, even before the serum, but now- she blushes remembering her hand involuntarily reaching for him when he emerged from the pod that day in the bunker. And the first time she saw him in his dress uniform, she had all but stopped breathing. She was only grateful that she had been alone and across the room so no one had noticed her reaction. She heads to her closet to get her robe for after the bath and a piece of red fabric catches her eye. She runs her hands over the dress as she remembers a simpler time when she would have worn this dress out dancing, or even on a date. Before she can stop herself she pulls the dress of the hanger and heads to the bathroom. 

After changing into the dress and touching up her hair and makeup, she heads out of her flat and back toward the pub where she had seen Steve earlier. Imagining his reaction to the tight red dress had her picking up her pace. In a few short minutes she finds herself in front of the door of the pub, the sounds of soldiers singing spilling out onto the street. Taking a deep breath and steeling her face, she pulls open the door. 

She glances around the bar, and not seeing Steve, she starts to worry that he may have left. Absorbed in her thought, she barely registers that the men have stopped singing and all eyes are on her. She sees the table of men from the 107th and nods in acknowledgement. The man she recognizes as Dugan nods his head towards the back room with a smile on his face. She keeps walking and stops in the doorway when she sees Sgt. Barnes and Steve. She takes a deep breath. 

“Captain.”  
“Agent Carter.” 

She steps towards them, nodding to Barnes and resting her gaze on Steve.  
“Howard has some new equipment for you to try. Tomorrow morning?”  
“Sounds good.”  
Turning her head to look at the men who have returned to their singing and drinking, she feels Steve looking her over and she smiles to herself.  
“I see your top squad is prepping for duty.”  
“What, you don’t like music?” Bucky asks beside her.  
Her eyes once again trained on Steve’s, she replies, “I do actually. I might, even when all this is over, go dancing.”  
“Well, what are we waiting for?” Bucky asks, watching his friend closely.  
“The right partner,” she answers, her eyes still on Steve’s. “0800, Captain.”  
“Yes, ma’am, I’ll be there” Steve answers. 

Peggy turns and walks back into the front room, satisfied that she has thoroughly flustered America’s favorite hero. She steps up to the bar and pulling money out of her bag, orders a whiskey. The bartender sets the glass in front of her and she quickly downs the drink, lays down the money, and walks out of the pub. 

~  
“I’m invisible. I’m turning into you. It’s like a horrible dream.” Bucky says, turning back towards the bar.  
“Don’t take it so hard,” Steve replies, patting him on the back, “maybe she’s got a friend.”  
Steve grabs his drink and raises the glass.  
“What are you doing, man?” Bucky asks.  
“I’m finishing my drink. What are you talking about?”  
“Go after her. There’s no way she came in here just to tell you to be at work in the morning. Come on.”  
“You think she-“ Steve stammers out.  
“Yeah, I do. She could have sent someone to tell you about Stark’s equipment or just told you when you arrived at the bunker, but she got all dolled up and came herself. We’ve all seen how you two look at each other. Go get her.”  
“But what do I-?”  
“Just offer to walk her home.”  
Steve downs the rest of his drink and heads out the door, Bucky laughing and shaking his head. 

Peggy walks until she gets a few doors down from the pub, stopping and leaning her back against the wall. She takes a few deep breaths to calm her rapidly beating heart. She steps away from the wall and turns to walk home. She hears footsteps coming behind her and she instinctively reaches for the small gun hidden in her bag. She quickens her pace as she hears the steps get closer until, “Agent Carter, please wait.” 

Turning around she sees Steve strolling towards her. Her hand releases the gun as her heart swells. 

“That’s no way to approach a woman, Captain. Especially in the dark.”  
“I apologize. Please allow me to escort you home. A lady shouldn’t be walking alone in the dark at this time of night. Especially looking like that.”  
“Looking like what exactly?”  
“Umm, I just mean- uh- -“  
“Still don’t know how to talk to women,” she teases. “Well, I’d be happy for the company. Thank you, Steve.”

She nods in the direction of her flat and they start walking in silence. She can’t help but smile at how nervous he is acting. Keeps moving his hands as if not sure what he should be doing with them. She moves her purse to her right hand and loops her left hand through his elbow. She can’t stop the laugh escaping her lips as he jumps at her touch. 

“I’m not going to hurt you, Steve. It’s just my hand. Besides, no one dare try anything with Captain America on my arm. Even if I do look like this.” She says with a teasing glance. “Oh I know it’s a little tight and a few years out of date, but it’s been years since I’ve been able to wear anything besides that uniform and I wanted to feel like a woman instead of a soldier, even if only for a little while,” she continues, unable to stop herself.  
“No one could ever say you don’t look like a woman, Agent Carter,” Steve replies, seeming to gain confidence in the dark.  
“Well thank you for noticing, “she says. “And please, it’s Peggy. At least outside the office.”  
“Well, then, Peggy,” he starts softly, “tell me about London. I’ve never been here before.” 

They spend the rest of the walk talking about her hometown and growing up in London. And if either of them notice her thumb stroking his arm, neither one of them mentions it. Too quickly they reach her building and she stops walking and reaching for her keys. 

“Now that I’ve seen you safely home, I suppose I should say goodnight, Agent Carter.” Steve says softly, turning away.  
“Hold it right there, soldier.” Peggy orders using her official tone. “When one sees a lady home, it is polite to walk her all the way inside the building and to her door, not leave her alone one he sidewalk.”  
“Yes, ma’am,” he replies, turning back around. 

They walk in the building and up to her flat. As they reach her door she pulls her keys out and unlocks the door. 

“Care to come in for a drink? It’s the least I can do for taking you away from your friends,” she says, walking through the door leaving it open for him to follow.  
He stands frozen in the hallway for a few moments before she calls from inside, “ Well, if you’re not going to come in, then at least shut the door so I don’t get thrown out for having a man in the building after hours.” 

He finally walks in the door, shutting it behind him. He takes a deep breath and walks into the room. It’s a small, studio apartment, tastefully decorated. Peggy walks over to the closet and removes her shoes, a small moan of contentment leaves her lips at the relief of being out of them for the evening. She pads over to a drink cart set up by the couch, gesturing for him to sit. 

“What’s your poison, soldier?” She asks as he takes a seat.  
“I’ll have whatever you’re having.”  
“Whiskey it is.” She hand him a glass, taking a sip from her own. “Make yourself comfortable, I’ll just be a moment. If I sit down in this dress, it’ll tear.” She heads into the bathroom and quickly changes into pajamas and a robe. 

Peggy walks over and sits on the opposite end of the couch. She can tell that Steve is trying not to stare and she smiles to herself. She sets her glass down and lifts her leg to rub her feet. 

“I can do that for you,” Steve offers quietly. “I mean...umm...I used to rub my mom’s feet after a long day at the hospital.”  
Peggy stretches further down on the couch and rests her feet on his lap. She takes a sip from her drink and watches him through her lashes. 

“You’re awfully good at that,” she says with a small moan of appreciation.  
“Like I said. I used to do this for my mom. She would work so many hours to try and keep up with all my medical care. It was such a small thing, but it was one way to show her some appreciation. Of course, I was much smaller then. I’m sure my technique has improved a bit.”  
“Tell me more about her.”  
“Well, she was a nurse. She hated that she couldn’t so more for me. But with all my health issues, I was lucky that she was able to help me more than someone who wasn’t a nurse. She was able to keep me at home longer than if she wasn’t. I would have spent a lot more time in the hospital. I spent so much time in different wards, I was grateful for any amount of time I was at home. We couldn’t afford much so she was always trying to find new recipes, a way to make what we had into something different.”

Steve glanced over at Peggy to find that she had fallen asleep. He smiled and picked up her other foot. He wasn’t going to leave her with only one foot massaged. He continued talking softly to help keep her asleep. He finishes rubbing both of her feet and turns to look at her. Seeing her look so vulnerable in her sleep, he can’t bring himself to leave just yet. He continues talking softly. Telling her stories of growing up with Bucky and the trouble they got into. 

After several stories, Steve glances at his watch. 3:30 AM. How did it get so late? He better make his way back to the barracks before someone notices he’s missing. He slowly moves Peggy’s legs off of his lap and stands up. He moves towards the door and looks back at her sleeping figure. His eyes dart towards the bed and he decides to move her so she’s more comfortable on her bed. 

He slowly slips his arms under her knees and arms, careful not to wake her. He’s sure she is a light sleeper after everything that happens on the front lines. Having gathered her in his arms, he tries not to think about how soft and warm she feels. He shakes his head and tries to clear the thought from his mind. He walks slowly over to the bed and feels her shifting against him. He looks down at her, afraid of her reaction should she wake up while he’s holding her. Thankfully, she is still asleep. 

Steve moves to lay her on the bed and she buries her face into his neck and grips his shirt. He clears his throat and his eyes search the room hoping something will let him know how to handle this. He remains still for a few minutes until she relaxes again and her grip on his shirt loosens. He lowers her onto the bed again and once again she grips his shirt. He bends over with her and half lays in the bed beside her until she relaxes. He started telling her another story, keeping his voice low, until she relaxes again and releases her hold on his shirt. He remains still, not breaking off from his story. After a few moments she rolls over onto her other side and he slowly gets up from the bed. 

As he makes his way back to the door, he spots a small newspaper on her side table. Curious, he lifts it up to see an article from the town where she grew up congratulating “our very own Margaret Carter” as she moved up the ranks of the army. The details in the article were made up of course but the pride was true. Before he can think about it he pockets the paper and scribbles a note on the notepad next to it. With one last glance at the sleeping agent, he heads out the door. 0800 will come too quickly and he needs to get back to the barracks and get some sleep. 

~~~~

Peggy wakes up at her normal time. Years and years of waking up early make an alarm unnecessary. She doesn’t remember getting into bed last night but she is wearing her pajamas so nothing was amiss there. As she looks around her small flat, she sees the whiskey glasses and remembers inviting Steve in after he walked her home from the pub. She must have drank more than she thought she had. There are no signs of a hangover, but she can’t remember him leaving and her getting into bed. 

Its not until after she has gotten ready for the day that she sees the note Steve left for her. 

Thanks for the drink.  
See you at 0800. :)  
-S

With a smile and the note tucked safely in her purse she heads off to work. Eager to see the Captain and what the day may hold.


End file.
